Suddenly, ECOWAS is legitimate in Jammeh's eyes

Yaya Jammeh 

The two-month old Senegal - Gambia border closure has forced the Gambian dictator to swallow his pride (or has he any?) by imploring the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to arbitrate in the stand-off between the two countries, triggered by the unilateral tariff increase by Jammeh.

ECOWAS has suddenly become a legitimate body in the eyes of a dictator who is obviously on the ropes as a result of the economic squeeze exerted by the Senegalese Transport Union in preventing union drivers from plying the TransGambia highway.

Jammeh has been thumbing his nose at the regional organization since he seized power in 1994 by refusing to knowledge, much less recognize, several of the ECOWAS Court of Justice's decisions - all of which have gone against the regime in Banjul and in favor of namely journalists who have been killed, tortured or had disappeared.

Deyda Hydara, the veteran Gambian journalist was ambushed and killed by security agents of the Jammeh in December 2004.  The ECOWAS Court found the regime of Jammeh to have failed in properly investigating the case.  It also declared that Gambia had violated its treaty obligations by promoting a climate of impunity that effectively stifles freedom of expression.  The Court, as a result, awarded damages of US$50,000 plus court costs which Jammeh ignored.

That was not all.  Previously, Jammeh had refused to implement the Court's decision in the case of Ebrima "Chief " Manneh, another Gambian journalist who disappeared since July 2006, to pay his family damages of US$ 100,000.  Unfortunately, the journalist remains missing to date, his whereabouts unknown and financial damages remain unpaid.

The ECOWAS Court ruled in favor of yet another Gambian journalist named Musa Saidykhan, who was in the custody of the security agents of the regime for three weeks, held without charge and tortured.  In December 2010, the Court ruled in his favor and ordered the regime of Yaya Jammeh to pay Saidykhan damages of US$ 200,000.  Again, the Jammeh regime chose to ignore the Court's ruling.

Now that the shoe is on the other foot, Jammeh has taken the issue of the border closure to the regional body with the hope that it will intervene in his favor.  With numerous ECOWAS decisions ignored by Jammeh, one wonders whether Jammeh expects Senegal to abide by any subsequent decision of the regional body should it go against the government of Macky Sall.  What if ECOWAS finds Jammeh to be at fault?  What then? Will he abide by the decision or will he continue to flout the decision as he has with previous Court decision?  We'll wait and see.

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"Jammeh has no respect for ECOWAS, therefore nothing to negotiate" says Senegalese Drivers' Union president

Sabi - Vellingara desolate border post

As the Gambia-Senegal border closure enters Week 8, tempers continue to flare and the rhetoric growing louder as the toll on the economies of both countries, but more so on the Gambian side, continue to rise.

In reaction to Jammeh's decision to take the matter to the ECOWAS Commission, the president of the Senegalese Drivers' Union questions the motive behind Gambia;s complaint since, according to him Jammeh has no respect for the regional body because of his constant flouting of the bi-lateral agreement between the two countries.

The main source of the Drivers' Union's frustrations is Jammeh's dictatorial attitude towards the established rules governing tariff management and regulations.  Although prior consultations are required, Jammeh always acts on his whims without consulting his Senegalese partners.

The Union boss has ruled out any negotiations and has urged the government of Senegal to stay out of the problem.  Its membership views this problem as a purely transport union matter.   According to the union, the matter goes beyond unilateral increases in tariff without notice or consultation but also the refusal to accept local currency, the dalasi, the legal tender in The Gambia.

Meanwhile the ECOWAS mission that visited Banjul early in the week is already in the Senegalese capital of Dakar to get the other side of a story that promises to be a long drawn out affair.  

A cautionary note to UDP and PPP leaderships

Following yesterday's demonstration of anger and frustration by supporters of the United Democratic Party who were coming from a successful party Congress in Basse that re-elected Ousainou Darboe as Secretary General and party leader, the dictatorship was rattled by the size of the crowd that paraded their anger along the streets of Serrekunda.

Jammeh was reportedly visibly shaken by both the size of the crowd and the show of vehement defiance of the repressive regime by a group of determined young men and women, most of whom were supporters of the United Democratic Party, Gambia's leading opposition party.

According to sources, Jammeh is more cautious now than previously as he inches towards the December elections by shedding his trademark confrontational approach towards his opponents, both real and perceived.  He will, thus, avoid deploying the army to confront protesters because of the volatile nature of the political environment that is being fueled by both the repressive measures of the regime and the deteriorating economic conditions resulting from incompetent management of the economy and high-level corruption.

Rather than confront his opponents, Jammeh's approach going forward is to target the leadership of the UDP and PPP who, in the eyes of the regime, pose the greatest threat to his leadership. According to our sources, the leadership of these two political parties and the most prominent and vocal supporters are potential targets.

Disappearances using Salif Sadio's MFDC renegades to carry out his dirty work, rather than arrests, detentions and torture will be the preferred method of dealing with opponents, according to our source.  The opposition parties, especially the UDP and PPP, are thus being cautioned now so that to appropriate measures are taken..                    

Jammeh must be confronted head on.

Sidi Sanneh 

Elections will not remove Jammeh from power; only direct action of civil disobedience in the streets will.  Confrontation of the kind seen recently in Burkina Faso is the only solution to the tyrannical rule in The Gambia.

The elections scheduled for December this year have already been rigged. assuring Jammeh another "win" and, thus, any attempt to go to the polls with Jammeh under the skewed electoral laws will guarantee the vile, corrupt and incompetent regime of Yaya Jammeh yet another 5 years of corruption, ineptitude, torture and mayhem.

The temptation of an election under the current electoral laws must be avoided at all cost.  Here's why.

The electoral rolls are filled with the non-Gambians from the sub-region with the majority from the southern Senegalese region of Casamance who have been issued with national identification and voters cards.  The rolls also contain fictitious names, names of the deceased and thousands of young Gambians who have voted with their feet by taking "The Back Way" to Europe via the Mediterranean.

The regime has confirmed our point by inadvertently illustrating our point in real time by collecting over a quarter of a million signature and voters' cards from registered voters in a span of one week across the country that has a total population of 2 million people.

According to the discredited Independent Electoral Commission, the total number of registered voters is close to half of the entire Gambian population.  In a country where it is estimated that over 500,000 are Senegalese nationals, the total number of registered voters provided by the IEC becomes highly suspect.

Anticipating a win, the opposition, as they have in four previous presidential elections that they end up losing to the dictator, brushes off these statistical anomalies as insignificant or inaccurate or both, plunging yet again into the dark unknown at the peril of a skeptical and apathetic voting public.

Confronting Jammeh head on in the streets is the only viable option left in ridding The Gambia of what has become a scourge that must be excised from the political scene for the rebuilding of the country to commence.   Gambia will never progress with Jammeh at the helm.

Jammeh invites Casamance citizens to protest against Senegalese government over border closure

As the border closure enters its sixth week, the economic repercussions are beginning to be felt across Gambia.

With little chance of negotiations between the two parties taking place anytime soon, further delaying the possibility of a reprieve in the immediate horizon, Jammeh invited a "large number" of  influential citizens in Casamance to a strategic meeting.

According to our sources, the delegation that was invited to Jammeh's home village of Kanilia, included village heads (chefs de villages), transporters including truck and bus drivers, mechanics, apprentices etc) to a strategic meeting.  The meeting took place Saturday, April 2nd.

The purpose of the meeting was to entice and encourage attendees to publicly demonstrate against the border closure by blaming Macky Sall and his government - a government increasingly seen as the main culprit despite that it was Jammeh who unilaterally increased the tariff by 1,000% without consultation or timely notification of the aggrieved party.

Huge sums of money were given to the Casamance visitors by the Gambian dictator to help defray the cost of mobilizing the local population in border towns and neighboring villages against the government of Macky Sall. This latest development is further evidence of how extensive is Jammeh's meddling in the internal affairs of Senegal.    

Gambia apologizes to Senegal, Foreign Minister Macdoull-Gaye requests a meeting for 5th April to discuss border closure

Senegal's Foreign Minister, Mankeur Ndiaye

Mrs. Neneh Macdoull-Gaye, Gambia's Foreign Minister has written to Mankeur Ndiaye, Senegal's Foreign Minister apologizing to Senegalese authorities, for what appears to be a breach of diplomatic protocol, on behalf of a Gambian delegation, led by the country's Trade Minister, who were in Dakar to procure and urgently ship a consignment of engine lubricant to Banjul.

Gambia's National Electricity Company (NAWEC) is not only running out of fuel but its stocks of lubricants, essential for the smooth running of its generators, are running dangerously low too.  It was this NAWEC delegation that resided at the King Fahd hotel.  When we asked why Gambia's Trade Minister headed the delegation and whether his presence in Dakar was necessary given the current tense diplomatic atmosphere that exists between the two countries as a result of the 5-week old border closure.

It turns out that the Trade Minister and the NAWEC who were mistaken for the Gambian ministerial delegation, did not meet his Senegalese counter-apart, and had to rush back to Banjul to attend "an extra-ordinary emergency session" according to the letter written by Gambia's Foreign Minister.

The extra-ordinary emergency session Foreign Minister Macdoull-Gaye was referring to was the State Opening of Parliament which was neither an extra-ordinary nor an emergency session of Parliament.  The session is a fixed item on the legislative calendar.  So it is incomprehensible as to why she will deceptively characterized a parliamentary session in this way.  She excused the delegation that had to rush back to Banjul and for this she apologized to the Senegalese Foreign Minister.

In apologizing for the breach in diplomatic protocol, Gambia's Foreign Minister formally requested a new meeting date of Tuesday 5th April, a day after Senegal's Independence Day, which could pose a problem.  In all likelihood, the meeting, if it's going to be held in the near future, will not be on the proposed date.  The proposed 5th April meeting is a preliminary and low-level meeting to set the agenda for a high-level meeting that will be schedule at a future date, according to Gambia's letter to Senegal.

It just so happens that the Minister of Trade issued a notice convening a town hall meeting of "all government stakeholders, commercial vehicle owners, transport associations and transport unions among others on Tuesday the 5th April - same day that Gambia is proposing to meet with Senegalese authorities - "to discuss issues affecting the transport sector and map out an approach on the way forward."

Gambia's Foreign Minister, Macdouall-Gaye 

The dilemma facing the Jammeh regime is that the Gambia National Transport Control Association (GNTCA), the premier transport union that has acted as intermediary between the Senegalese Transport Union and the government has since been banned and members of the executive charged with economic crimes.

It was while in custody that one of its executive, Sheriff Dibba, died under suspicious circumstances, leading to the call by the London-based International Transport Federation and the International Labor Organization - a UN Agency.

A second executive, Mr. Moumini Sey, who was arrested, charged, held in custody and subsequently released has not been heard from since. The Senegalese Transport Union, in solidarity with its Gambian counterpart has been insisting on an investigations into the suspicious death of their colleague with whom they have collaborated in the past.

The clumsy manner in which the border closure crisis is being handled from Banjul is further indication that the regime has lost both direction and the will to govern.  It also shows the total lack of expert advise in general and the area of foreign policy and international relations in particular. Another striking revelation brought on by the crisis is the isolation of the Jammeh regime in the absence of any offer of mediation by Gambia's neighbors in the region such as Guinea-Bissau or Nigeria.

A source sums up the unpopularity of Yaya Jammeh in Senegal and the region when he said "who cares about Jammeh's complaint in a situation where only Faure Gnassingbe (Togo's president) is his ally in the community', responding to a question I posed regarding the status of Gambia's complaint reportedly filed with ECOWAS.  

U.S. Senators urge Jammeh to release radio journalist, Alhagie Abdoulie Ceesay

U.S. Senator Richard J. Durbin  of Illinois 

U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy of  Vermont